A Friend Called Mick

For a moment nobody spoke. The wind blew along the empty platform, and somewhere behind the hills the Manchester train was getting louder. Ana could feel her heart beating in her throat. She had promised. Only a minute ago, she had promised. “This is Mick,” she heard herself say. “He’s a friend. He works at the supermarket warehouse.”

Sesaat tak seorang pun berbicara. Angin berembus di sepanjang peron yang kosong, dan di suatu tempat di balik bukit kereta Manchester terdengar semakin keras. Ana bisa merasakan jantungnya berdegup kencang di tenggorokan. Dia sudah berjanji. Baru satu menit yang lalu, dia berjanji. “Ini Mick,” ia mendengar dirinya berkata. “Dia teman. Dia bekerja di gudang supermarket.”

“Oh. Hi,” Jess said. She looked at him the way teenagers look at most adults, politely and without much interest. Then she opened her crisps. “Are you going to Manchester? The train’s coming.”

“Oh. Halo,” kata Jess. Dia memandangnya seperti remaja memandang kebanyakan orang dewasa, dengan sopan dan tanpa banyak minat. Kemudian dia membuka keripiknya. “Kamu mau pergi ke Manchester? Keretanya datang.”

Michael opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He was holding his wallet so hard that his fingers had gone white. Ana saw him look at Jess’s red hair, at her green eyes, at the small scar on her chin that Ana had never noticed before. He looked at her as if he was trying to remember every detail of her face for the rest of his life.

Michael membuka mulutnya, tetapi tidak ada kata yang keluar. Dia memegang dompetnya begitu erat sampai jari-jarinya memutih. Ana melihatnya menatap rambut merah Jess, mata hijaunya, dan bekas luka kecil di dagunya yang belum pernah Ana perhatikan sebelumnya. Dia menatapnya seolah-olah sedang berusaha mengingat setiap detail wajahnya selama sisa hidupnya.